MARIETTA, Ga. — Deputies are on standby guarding the Marietta home of the president of the National Rifle Association.
Law enforcement officials confirmed to Channel 2 Cobb County Bureau Chief Chris Jose that the group's head of security called the Sheriff's Office in response to the mass shootings over the weekend.
Jose stopped by Carolyn Meadows’ east Cobb County home Wednesday and saw a Cobb County patrol car parked in front of it.
Cobb County Republican Party Chairman Jason Shepherd told Jose that he immediately contacted Meadows after he learned about potential threats in the wake of the mass shootings.
“I’ve known the NRA president for a number of years. She used to be very active in the Republican party,” Shepherd said.
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The Sheriff’s Office said Meadows is paying off-duty deputies to guard her home.
“I called her up yesterday and left a voicemail just letting her know (that) I’ve heard through the grapevine what was going on. I wanted to make sure she knew she had our support and assistance in any way possible,” Shepherd said.
A high-ranking source with the Sheriff’s Office told Jose he’s not sure if there were credible threats directed at Meadows or if the call for extra security is simply a precaution in response to the weekend massacres.
“When you see a security detail, that’s a smidge of what’s going on,” security expert Brent Brown said.
Brown told Jose that he works with big corporations around the country. He says the call for help on top of Meadows’ own security detail is a show of force meant to keep potential attackers away.
“Every time there’s a threat, they’re on it. There’s probably something that ramped it up,” Brown said.
The NRA has not responded to Jose’s request for a comment on this story.
The chairwoman for the local Democratic Party told Jose the party had nothing to do with the threats.
She told Jose that someone stuffed Meadows' mailbox with hundreds of anti-gun postcards. The Democrats say they don't condone that kind of behavior.